"Aye." Warton rushed out into the dawn light behind Rusty, Ethan and Lawrie.
Colin checked the man lying on the ground and found he was not breathing. He dragged his body outside, then returned to the cave and hurried through the passage.
"'Tis me." Colin entered the second cavern, again finding it dark as pitch and disorienting. This was what Kristina had to live with every day. He didn't know how she dealt with it.
"What happened?" she asked.
"Your friend Red Holme paid us a visit."
"Saints! I knew 'twas him. Is anyone injured?"
"One of his men was killed. The rest ran. I sent my men to capture them. I want to hide you deep in the cave until they're no longer a threat to you."
"Good heavens," she muttered. "'Tis ridiculous that Red Holme would try to take me hostage again."
"I agree, especially since his clan was the loser in the battle at Bearach Castle. But now I'm thinking he probably wants to kill me more than he wants to capture you."
"Why on earth would he?"
"I didn't ken it until moments ago, but we have history. When I was a lad of fifteen, my father rooted out some traitors to the crown. 'Twas my first battle. We fought the MacKillican clan and won. Those not killed during the battle were imprisoned, except for some who fled. He claims to be the chief's son."
"He has always gone by Holme, not MacKillican. Is he telling the truth?"
"Most likely. He recognized me and called me by name. He looked far different back then, but I do see the family resemblance. He's starting to look more like his father now."
"So, he wants revenge against you personally for something your father and your whole clan did?"
"Aye, like I said, I fought in the battle."
"How could you at such a young age? Did your father not fear you would be killed?"
"I had been training every day since I could walk, and I was big for my age, almost the height I am now. During practice, I often bested men twice my age."
"I'm greatly impressed."
He snorted. "I was not trying to brag. Just letting you know why my father didn't worry. And neither should anyone else."
"Well, I will worry about all of us until we are safely behind castle walls."
"I will get you down to Bearach as soon as I can. In the meantime, I'm going to take you into the third chamber of this cave. 'Twill make it harder for them to find you."
She agreed that might be for the best.
Crawling along the narrow, damp passage, Kristina heard the rushing water of the small river Colin had told her about earlier. Though her skirts hampered her efforts to navigate the constricted passage, Kristina managed it well enough and after another minute, Colin helped her stand.
"The river is more swollen than usual because of yesterday's storms." Because of the water's roar, he raised his voice a bit as he spoke near her ear.
"Is the water deep?"
"I'm guessing about four feet at the moment and running swiftly."
"And is it dark in here?" She liked to visualize places as much as possible since sight had been a part of her life for so long.
"Aye, but not as pitch-black as the second chamber. The barest hint of light filters in from the channel cut by the water, but 'tis still as dark as deepest gloaming."
After crawling, her hands felt crusted in mud and dirt. "Could I wash my hands and drink from the river? Is it clean?"
"Aye. It comes down from the mountain. No one lives up there that I'm aware of."
